By Iminza Keboge
Published February 16, 2019
An international financial institution that focuses on rural people has appointed Sherrie Silver, an MTV award-winning choreographer and dancer Advocate for Rural Youth.
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialised United Nations agency based in the Italian city of Rome, says Sherrie Silver, its first ever IFAD Advocate for Rural Youth, shall ‘help amplify the voices of rural youth around the world’.
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Born in Rwanda and educated in the United Kingdom, Silver was made world-famous by her choreography work in Childish Gambino’s culturally seismic video, This Is America, which won the ‘Best Choreography’ category at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards and most recently at the 2019 Grammy Awards.
IFAD describes the 24 year-old Silver as a social media influencer who is ‘passionate about helping young people thrive and educating the world about African cultures through dance, while giving back to African countries through her philanthropy’.
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Silver’s appointment kicked-off the ‘Our Future is Here’ youth-led movement that aims to capture the energy and creativity of young people to raise awareness on the importance of investing in agriculture at a time when world hunger is on the rise, driven by conflict and climate change.
Hunger, poverty, youth unemployment and forced migration all have deep roots in rural areas, IFAD says. To eliminate hunger it is
The UN agency that says it ‘invested in rural people for 40 years, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience,’ estimates that an annual investment of US$180 billion is needed to eliminate hunger in areas.
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In her role as Advocate for Rural Youth, Silver is expected to use her global platform to meet and connect with youth around the world and help campaign for the importance of reaching young people through investing in agriculture and rural communities.
IFAD says that more than half of the world’s youth population of 1.2 billion live in rural areas and struggle to find employment.
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An estimated 11 million young people are expected to enter the job market every year over the next decade — the majority of them in rural areas, where agriculture is still the biggest source of livelihoods.
“It is with great delight that we welcome Sherrie Silver as our new Advocate for Rural Youth,” said Charlotte Salford, Associate Vice-President of External Relations and Governance Department at IFAD. “Dance and music are great unifiers. They help young people to express themselves and unite groups of people across cultures and countries.”
